Even as new stars were born in 2004--welcome Michael Phelps, Ben Roethlisberger, Maria Sharapova, Smarty Jones--others went dark. Each of the athletes, coaches and innovators who died left a mark: some great, some small, all indelible

New York has produced the most greats in basketball and baseball, Texas is tops in pro football immortals, and, of course, Canada is hockey's cradle. Here's where the best of the best came from in the four major sports and a few others

Maybe it's something in the air, the water or the surroundings. Whatever the case, many of the winningest pitchers and top home run hitters in the major leagues since 1920 were born in close proximity to one another

On numbers alone California has produced the most current pros in each of the three major sports. But on a per capita basis, states in the South have a heavier concentration of NBA and NFL talent, and baseball has an unlikely outpost

Once upon a time there were the Philadelphia Athletics, Minneapolis Lakers, Baltimore Colts and Quebec Nordiques. Pro franchises have moved around so relentlessly, always in search of greener pastures, that it's easy to forget where they all began

The most watched sport on television continues to be pro football by a large margin, but NASCAR viewership is climbing steadily. The NBA has caught on out West, and baseball is inching back to its pre-1994 strike level

California, with 25 Division I schools, rises above the rest in the alltime accumulation of collegiate laurels. Texas, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania have been big-time players; Mississippi and South Dakota are the only states whose schools haven't won an NCAA title

Since 1896, the U.S. has sent more than 9,000 athletes to the Winter and Summer Games. As illustrated by this map, which breaks down where those competitors were born by county per capita, every state has made a measurable contribution

Linebackers, linemen and running backs might have their roots predominantly in the Deep South, but quarterbacks are a more geographically diverse group. Though it ranks fourth in total signal-callers produced (24) since 1970, Louisiana has sent more passers per capita to the NFL than any other state over that span. The Sportsman's Paradise (birthplace of Terry Bradshaw, left, Jake Delhomme, Peyton Manning and Doug Williams) edges out Pennsylvania (which has delivered Joe Montana, Joe Namath and Johnny Unitas) and four lightly populated states--Iowa, Montana, North Dakota and Idaho. The union's most populous state, California, ranks first in total quarterbacks (88) but is 10th per capita. Had Washington, D.C., which has produced Byron Leftwich, Anthony Dilweg and Mike Kruczek, been included, the District would have been ahead of Louisiana on the per capita list.

• For a complete list of state rankings by position, go to si.com.

SOURCE: ELIAS SPORTS BUREAU

KEY The states are sized in proportion to the number of players per capita since 1970, and the colors relate to the total number of players. Even though California has been the birthplace to the most QBs, Louisiana is shown as the largest state because it has the most per capita.

NFL PLAYERS PER CAPITA BY POSITION, SINCE 1970

Linebackers

The Gulf Coast is king, topped by Louisiana--which has exported Pro Bowlers A.J. Duhe (left), Isiah Robertson and 64 others--then Alabama (Robert Brazile and Cornelius Bennett) and Mississippi (Johnie Cooks). While there are 180 California-born linebackers (placing that state 24th per capita), the next linebacker born in Alaska or New Hampshire will be the first in those states.

Linemen

Hall of Fame tackle Jackie Slater (left) and defensive lineman L.C. Greenwood hail from Mississippi, the top state for players in the trenches, just ahead of Louisiana and Alabama. This is the best category for the corn-fed boys of the Midwest; Iowa and Nebraska rank third (tied with Alabama) and seventh per capita, respectively. The sleeper state in this category: Hawaii has produced 25 linemen, placing the Aloha State fifth per capita.

Running Backs

The top eight states in runners per capita--from No. 1 Mississippi (birthplace of Walter Payton, left, Wilbert Montgomery and Marcus Dupree) to No. 8 North Carolina--are located below the Mason-Dixon line. Nebraska (ninth) and Ohio (12th) are the highest-ranking non-Southern states. The sleeper: Kansas is 31st per capita but boasts the greatest proportion of Hall of Fame backs (Gale Sayers, John Riggins and Barry Sanders).